West Michigan: Mom-to-Mom Sales this Weekend - September 13-15th, 2012!

If you're in the mid-West Michigan area, there are a couple big "mom-to-mom" sales going on in Grand Rapids this weekend you'll want to know about! 

This is such a great time to figure out what you need and plan ahead....and you'll have lots to choose from!  It's like having tons of yard sales all together, under one roof, with no bad weather, and no driving around!  =)


West Michigan Mom's Sale
Where: DeVos Place, 303 Monroe Ave. NW, Grand Rapids, MI  49503
When: Saturday, September 15th, 9am - 3pm
Cost:  FREE admission

"The West Michigan Moms Sale features hundreds of tables filled with baby/children/boys/girls gently used clothing (size 0-16), maternity clothing, toys, books, nursery furniture and other necessities. There is also a large item area where you can find strollers, swings, high chairs, exersaucers, cribs and other large toys and furniture."



Just Between Friends Fall Sales Event
Where:  The DeltaPlex, 2500 Turner Ave NW, Grand Rapids, MI 49544
When:  Sep 13 - Sep 15, 2012
Cost: $3 admission (or print a FREE admission voucher here!)

"Come out for hassle-free shopping. Items organized by size, gender, category; quality children's teen and maternity. Everything from toys to books to clothes and more. Thousands of items- shop early for the best selection."


There is also another sale next weekend in Muskegon, MI:

Lakeshore Mom to Mom Expo
Where:  Sherman Lanes, 1531 W. Sherman Blvd., Muskegon, MI  49441
When:  Saturday September 22, 2012 8:30am-2:00pm
Cost:  Early Bird 8:30am-10:00am, $5 (enters the drawing for KidZone Party $200 value!)
10:00am-2:00pm $2

"The Expo where over 200 moms sell, trade, and buy gently used children's clothing & toys!"

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This bit of advice is from the WM Mom's Sale site, but of course could be helpful for all:
Tips and Suggestions
•Arrive early for the best deals.
•Bring your own reusable shopping bag.
•Bring cash in small bills. Checks will not be accepted.
•If you anticipate purchasing a large item and will be unable to carry it yourself, please bring someone with you that can help.

Entryway Organization with a $2 Yard Sale Find!

This past weekend was a beautifully sunshiny day for yard saling.  I came across this little cubby/shelf thingy for $2.....

I wasn't sure what I'd do with it right away, but there were so many possibilities - organization in the laundry room, kids play room, kids closets....the only problem now was deciding.

When I came into the house I saw the "shoe-palooza" that our entryway had become.....and with embarrassment I show you the pictures.....*blush. 

The kids keep their shoes and backpacks here, and we have a "1-pair of shoes per person in the entry" rule (except for Emma who's 4, because I don't want to run up to her closet to get the right pair for the day, so she gets that wired basket). 
Without a way to corral them though, they tend to sprawl all over the floor and the kids "forget" how many shoes they already have there.  It makes me crazy to walk through this every time I come home.

As I dusted off the cubby shelf thing I had just bought, I realized that it would be perfect for containing the shoe monster!  So I cleared out the whole area, vacuumed it, realigned the rugs, and set up the new shoe station.

2 of the kids are in running after school (cross-country and Girls on the Run), so they often wear a couple different pairs of shoes in a day......I changed the rule to 2 pairs per kid, but they must stay in their assigned cuibby.  I love that it goes vertical and keeps more of the floor clean.....we're 3 days in and so far so good!  =)  It was a great $2 organizational fix!

 

DIY Star Wars Costumes (Baby Yoda, Princess Leia, Mace Windu, and an Ewok)

I had so much fun putting these costumes together!  We had a very small budget and we waited 'til the last minute (of course, lol), so very little time too.  Luckily they were quick, cheap, and easy!

Not even a week left before Halloween, a neighbor suggested we dress our one and a half year old son, Lucas, up as Yoda because he's small and wobbly and it would be a perfect time.  We hadn't decided on costumes yet, and it sounded like a good idea. 

I love having the kids at least all dress in the same theme.....some years they've been on board, other times they all have their own ideas, which is fine too.....but it's just so cute to have them coordinate!  =)  A couple years ago (before Lucas was born) we went with a Wizard of Oz theme that turned out so great!

While I'm not a huge fan of the Star Wars movies, as we thought about it, we realized that we already had a Stormtrooper outfit in the dress up box from a previous year's clearance rack, a light saber (we do have 3 boys after all, lol), and my husband has a long grey robe that my mom made for my dad years ago and lends itself very well to a Star Wars-y feel. 

So, once we decided to go for the Star Wars thing, I took the kids to a local thrift store to see what we could find.  We came back with this.............

 {long brown robe - $3.99}

 {furry vest, coat collar thingy, and thin brown hood = $4.25}

 {mint green polyester shirt, tan sweater = $3.50}

 {white choir robe/graduation type gown = $1}

Mace Windu:
The brown robe was my 11 year olds choice for Mace Windu (don't even ask me who that is, lol).  I had planned on removing the floral embroidery, but those darn threads would not come out!  So, we turned it inside out, cut off the tag, and we were good to go! He carried a light saber.

Ewok:
The brown vest, collar and hood were to make an Ewok costume for my 4 year old.  When we got home, Emma asked about wearing her bear costume that she wore last year, that I had completely forgotten about!  I put them together for the cutest Ewok I'd ever seen.  I added a little eyeliner to her nose and she kept telling people she was an "E-walker".  =)
Here's Em as a bear last year.....

Yoda:
I had been hoping to find a Yoda hat/ears at the thrift store, but they didn't have anything pre-made.  When I saw the collar on that shirt though I knew the pointy greenness would be perfect!  I wanted it to be a darker green....not so, minty, but for $1.50 - it worked.

I put the most work into "Yoda".  I cut off the pointy ends of the collar, put part of a paper towel inside the pocket it made, to keep the ears from being floppy, then sewed them shut.
I was going to try to attach the ears to a hat, but after I looked around online, I decided to make a little hood that I could tie closed so Lucas would keep it on (hopefully!).  I made a hood similar to this, and then sewed a couple strips of the material to it.  If I had more time I would've sewn the ears into the hood, but we were getting down to the wire and I just went with some "fancy" safety pins to attach them.

It would've been much easier if I had a sewing machine (or one that works anyways!), but I finished the whole thing by hand in about 3 hours......I did have to take out a whole row of stitches because of a mistake.....and I cut out two of the same exact shapes for the hood instead of flipping the image, so the hem is the wrong way on one side, but it worked out fine.....no one noticed or cared.  =)

I then put the tan sweater on him and wrapped a rope for a belt around it. I guessed how long the sleeves should be and cut them off.  I didn't worry about the edges being real straight or even since Yoda's robe was pretty rugged.  The length of the body ended up being perfect just as it was!  We found a little piece of wood that worked for a cane, and he loved carrying it around!

Princess Leia:
Grace's costume was as simple as putting on the gown, putting a belt around her middle and braiding a bun on each side of her head.


Randy wore the grey robe to be Emperor Palpatine, Jacob put on the Stormtrooper costume, and we were ready to trick or treat!

So, for $12.75, we had a Star Wars cast that I thought was just adorable!  Less than what many costumes cost for just one!  I'm quite happy with how it turned out.....what do you think?

Now, what should next years theme be??  .....maybe I can get an earlier start than 3 days.  ;)

Linking up.....

 

Fun Frugal Finds! ;)

I found a couple things recently that I was really jazzed about and thought I'd share!

A few weeks ago I went to Goodwill and found a couple vases - a clear one with a green tint that has a beautiful shape, and also a round white one (orig. $20 from Target) with pretty floral details.  They were each $3.  (the bright green one was .79¢ and it's mentioned below).   I found bright yellow mums clearanced at WalMart and put them in the clear one - it was perfect!!  (forgot to take a picture!)

Then I went to another thrift store last Saturday and they just happened to be having a sale - all the clothes were .99¢ each - so I got a bunch of great things for the kids (and a few for me!) all under $18!   I tried getting a picture of the girls showing off a couple of their new shirts, but they were being too silly, so this is the best one I got......they're cute, but you can't see the shirts at all!  lol!   Oh wait, I did get one of Emma that was decent.  =)

A few days ago I went to Hope's Outlet and came across a bright green vase (in pic above) that I could see showing off some beautiful tulips for .79¢.   And......this chair (from Klingman's of Grand Rapids, MI) for guess how much??!!

(yes, that is a dead flower basket still on the porch......don't judge)

$2.99!!  Can you believe that?   Now I know she's not too pretty right now, but I have a dream of (learning how and) recovering it.....like I've been dreaming of doing for two other chairs......or maybe I'll just go with a slipcover.  ;)   If I tackle that project, I will be sure to show you the "after". For now it's comfy-wumf and will be perfect replacing one of the uncomfortable chairs in the basement tv room if nothing else!    I love the way it leans back!

Finally, my baby bear got a free hat from the .99¢ sale I mentioned above.  ahh, I love that cutie patootie!  =)

So, the grand total........
Chair
3 Vases
Children's Place hat
15 pieces of clothing
= $25!  Not too shabby!

Have you come across any Frugal Finds lately?